France’s ILO unemployment rate rose to 8.3% in Q2 2026 (+0.2 pts QoQ, +0.7 pts YoY), reaching its highest level since Q3 2020 as unemployment increased and the employment rate declined.

• The number of unemployed increased by +62,000 QoQ to 2.7 million, while unemployment was +261,000 higher YoY, reinforcing the continued deterioration in labor market conditions.

• Unemployment rose across all major age groups QoQ: ages 15–24 increased to 21.6% (+0.4 pts), ages 25–49 to 7.5% (+0.2 pts, highest since Q1 2021), and ages 50+ to 5.5% (+0.3 pts, highest since Q1 2022).

• On a YoY basis, unemployment increased by +2.5 pts for ages 15–24, +0.5 pts for ages 25–49, and +0.7 pts for ages 50+, showing that the rise in joblessness was broad-based across age cohorts.

• Women’s unemployment rate rose to 8.2% (+0.4 pts QoQ), while men’s remained unchanged at 8.5%; both rates were +0.8 pts higher YoY, indicating that recent quarterly deterioration was concentrated among women.

• The long-term unemployment rate increased to 2.1% (+0.1 pts QoQ, +0.4 pts YoY), its highest level since Q2 2022, as the number unemployed for at least one year rose by +36,000 QoQ and +116,000 YoY to 671,000.

• The employment rate for ages 15–64 fell to 69.0% (-0.3 pts QoQ, -0.5 pts YoY), with declines across ages 15–24, 25–49, and 50–64, indicating weaker employment alongside the increase in unemployment.

• The activity rate edged down to 75.4% (-0.1 pts QoQ, +0.2 pts YoY), just below its record high of 75.5% in Q1, suggesting labor force participation remained historically elevated despite the quarterly decline.

• The share of labor market participants constrained by unemployment, underemployment, or the halo around unemployment rose to 17.2% (+0.2 pts QoQ, +0.5 pts YoY), indicating a broader increase in labor supply constraints beyond headline unemployment.